Hero Worship
by Fictionista 48
Summary: For Kensi and Deeks, heroes only live in comic books. Or do they?  A fluffy, pointless little one-shot.


**Because I honestly had nothing better to do, and someone mentioned happy little one-shots in a review Tuesday. This is pure narrative fluff. Happy-happy feel-good crap. No better description available...Enjoy, and review if you feel moved to do so. Reviews make me do a happy dance.**

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><p>He's never really had a hero. Certainly not his father, who was anything but. And not his mother, who stood for all the abuse his father dished out. The woman who couldn't be bothered to protect her own son. There were no older brothers, no uncles to show him the way. Marty Deeks was alone. There was Ray, but he was no hero. Sure, he was a good guy, and he looked out for him, but he was on the wrong track, just like everyone else Deeks knew, including himself. Somehow, blessedly, he and Ray had had a moment of clarity, and decided to be better than what they came from. And in that moment of clarity, Deeks had looked to his future.<p>

Now, in his early thirties, he realizes what true heroes are. He sees them as people willing to do the extraordinary. People willing to forget themselves and do the right thing. People willing to help others. Some are military. Some are not. Some are cops. Some are not. But he knows them when he sees them.

She isn't like anyone else. She's totally unlike him, and maybe that's why this works so well. She's focused, intent, deadly serious. She's committed to the cause, and cannot be dissuaded. She takes herself entirely too seriously. She's walled-off and guarded, and trusts a very precious few people. Incredibly, he is one of those precious few. And it's quite possibly the biggest honor anyone has ever bestowed upon him.

What started out as tenuous at best, and probably doomed to failure, has become a partnership anyone would envy. What began as uncomfortable silences and outright frustration, has morphed into flirtations and friendship. What no one – but possibly Hetty Lange – expected to ever work, actually works beautifully.

No, he's never had a hero. He's lost himself in comic books, in a world where true heroes exist and do amazing things to save the day. Some would look at Detective Marty Deeks and think of him in those same terms. After all, day after day, he lays his life on the line to protect the innocent and take down the bad guys. He's been stabbed, shot, beaten and blown up in doing so, yet he never gives up. And that's an amazing thing. But he doesn't see himself that way.

He calls her Wonder Woman, and he truly means it. To him, she's the epitome of heroism. And like him, she fails to see herself as such. That, in itself, makes her even more amazing to him. He's never quite met anyone like her, and knows he never will again. Kensi Blye is one of a kind. He doubts the world could handle more than one, yet never doubts that an army of Kensis would eradicate the planet of all its human detritus, and crime would cease to exist. Single-handedly, she makes a difference. Multiplied, she would take over the world.

He's thought of her more hours off the clock than he'll ever admit. Just exactly what he feels for her, he isn't sure. He cares about her. He worries about her. He needs her. He admires her. He definitely lusts after her. He respects her more than almost anyone he's ever known. The one person who outranks her respect-wise, is four foot nine and unstoppable, despite her sixty-six years. And even _she_ would argue that no one else deserves the respect Kensi does.

He watches her when she's working out, and is in awe of her strength. He watches her in the field and is in awe of her command. He watches her in their off time, and is in awe of _her_. Period.

He knows little things about her life. He knows her dad was her best friend and her everything. He knows without being told, just how much she misses him, and he suspects that she grieves that loss, still. He wonders what it would be like to mourn the loss of a father who loved him. He'll never know himself, but he sees glimpses of it in his partner sometimes. He catches the sadness and longing in her eyes each time she sees a father and child. She's a master of control, but he's learned to read her, and he sees the pain of loss on those occasions, and he hurts for her.

He knows she lost the man she loved and planned to devote her life to. He knows it was sudden and shocking, and she still hasn't quite gotten over that loss, either. She may be over the man himself, but not the abandonment. She won't let anyone too close, and he knows it. He wants her to let him in and trust him with her heart as well as her life. He wants to show her that not everyone will walk away. He wants her to know she's worth sticking around for, and he's more than willing to prove it. As silly as it seems, he wants to be her hero. Because although he's never had one, she has become his.

Yes, if he's honest with himself, he now has a hero. He has someone to count on day in and day out. He has a partner, finally, who has his back, and would do anything for him. He counts on her, and that's a strange thing for him. He's never counted on anyone for anything. He's never trusted anyone. He's never admired anyone like he admires her. He calls her Wonder Woman. And he means it.

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><p>It's been years since she's had a hero. Not since her father, has she found anyone worthy of the title. Sure, there are the comic book heroes she immerses herself in, but they aren't real. She doesn't have to wonder if real heroes exist. She's seen them. Firefighters, cops, soldiers. Even everyday people who decided to put their own lives aside, and help someone in need. Yes, there are heroes. But Kensi hasn't had one of her own in years.<p>

He isn't like anyone else. He gets her. This shouldn't be possible, since she gives up as little personal info as possible. It isn't like he badgers her for it, either. He seems to know the boundaries when it comes to the important stuff. Yes, he drives her insane with his constant talking, but he seems to know inherently what's off limits, and he respects it. Maybe that's why it gets easier and easier to open up to him.

He's kindhearted and generous, and he loves kids and animals. He seems comfortable with everyone, whether cops or criminals, old or young, healthy or dying. But with kids and animals, he's in his element. They seem to release his inner child, who it seems, is often dying to come out and play. She watches him sometimes and wishes she were more like him. More open. More free. Not that he's an open book any more than she is. He has issues of his own he won't discuss. Somehow, she knows if she asks, he'll discuss them with her.

He makes light of almost everything. He can seem to find humor anywhere, and isn't ashamed to use that humor to lighten the mood or break the ice. He's a blatant flirt, and doesn't hesitate to use that, either to get what he wants. She lets him think it doesn't affect her, but the truth is, it gets her every time, and she would do anything for him. He's her best friend now, despite their rocky start. She cannot believe sometimes, how easy it is to be with him. How easy it is to trust him.

Trust doesn't come easy for her, and those precious few she trusts have been forced to earn it. It's amazing how quickly he did just that. And it wasn't just the first, second, or third time he saved her life. It was that look in his eyes, telling her he wouldn't let her down. Not then, and not ever. Why she found it so easy to believe, she cannot understand. But she did, and she does.

She hasn't had a hero in a very long time. She never thought she'd have another one. She honestly never thought she would find one. And for a very long time, she's told herself she didn't need one. She realizes now, that she does. She realizes that despite her strength and self-sufficiency, there has to be someone else to count on. Someone else to believe in, who just might believe in her.

He calls her Wonder Woman, and she laughs at that. But deep inside somewhere, she knows he means it. She knows he sees something in her, something even she doesn't see herself.

He seems amazed by her. The truth is, she is amazed by him. Marty Deeks is a goofball, a flirt, a master of bullshit. But he's something else, and surprisingly, it scares her less than she imagined it would, to face it. He is her hero now. And not because he's saved her life a half-dozen times. Not because he took care of her on Christmas, making sure she didn't fall asleep and not wake up from the head injury. Not because he worries over her, and watches over her like a guardian angel. It's because of a thousand tiny things she can't articulate. It just _is_. She would have never guessed it could happen, but Deeks is her hero.

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><p>It's been a rough case. Not so much for him as it has been for her, but he's had to watch her suffer, and that hasn't been easy, either. A Marine sergeant had gone missing two days ago, his wife and daughter distraught with the news. The team had done everything humanly possible to find the man, but in the end, it was no use. He had been murdered, his body dumped in a deserted industrial area. It had amounted to nothing more than a mugging gone bad, nothing more sinister than a good and decent man in the wrong place at the wrong time. A total, pointless waste of a life.<p>

When the body was reported to NCIS, Kensi had insisted on visiting the wife and child to give them the news herself. Deeks had insisted on going along, knowing what it would do to her. He didn't know if his presence would help, but he couldn't let her do it alone. Not when it struck so close to home for her.

After returning to the Mission afterward, she had disappeared into the gym for a while, and he had left her alone. Now, sitting alone in the bullpen, he sees her wander back in, and he can tell she's been crying. When she had broken the news to the wife and fifteen year-old daughter, he had been struck by how well-controlled she had been. Kind, empathetic, warm. But controlled. Underneath, though, he could see the current of sadness, the need to get out of there and retreat to a safe place where she could fall apart and grieve alone. Not only for that family, but for herself, once again.

She's gathering up her things, getting ready to go home for the night. He watches her swipe at stray tears, probably angry with herself for allowing them. He chews his lip for a moment, debating whether to approach her. In the end, he can't resist the pull.

"Hey," he says softly, touching her arm.

She looks up at him, eyes red. The emotional toll of this case is apparent on her face.

He takes a deep breath and prays for the right words. "I, uh…I just wanted you to know that, um…you're incredible, Kens. I admire you." He pauses. "You're my hero."

She stares at him, expression unreadable. "Yeah. What's the punchline?"

He leans forward and brushes a strand of hair from her face, staring into her eyes. Then, he leans in and whispers, "There isn't one." He kisses her softly on the cheek, and moves away.

She stands there, looking unsure of what to say. Then she smiles the faintest of smiles, and chews her bottom lip for a second. "Deeks?" She moves closer to him, reaching to touch him. "I don't take the concept of heroes lightly. So when I say this, know I'm being sincere."

He nods, almost imperceptibly, staring into her eyes.

"You make me laugh. You make me want to take life less seriously. You make me _better _than I am. I admire you. _You_ are my hero." She smiles that faint smile again, and reaches up on tiptoes to kiss his cheek, before taking her bag and walking out.

Neither one ever thought they would find a hero. They never thought they needed one. They had themselves, and that was enough. But then they found each other. And somehow, they're both the better for it.


End file.
